Collapsible self-storing stand

ABSTRACT

A stand or rack constructed with supporting legs which are removably attached to the sides of the stand and, when detached, are conveniently and compactly stored between the two side members.

United States Patent 1191 Schletz 1451 Jan. 2, 1973 s41 COLLAPSIBLE SELF-STORING STAND 2,924,414 2/1960 Te'sdac ..248/165 3,376,069 4/1968 Lowdermilk ..248/165 [76] Inventor gg fw t i Logan 3,586,278 6/1971 Simona ..248/l65 [22] FiledL V Dec. 24, 1970 FOREIGN PATENTS OR APPLICATIONS 21 Appl. N6: 101,256 305,067 4/1955 Switzerland ..248/165 1 Primary Examiner-Marion Parsons, Jr. 12?} 125852;:13::::::::1:333:33:i31:33:33:33311113311123 Attorney-Strykmndlawbson [58] Field of Search ..248/l65, 164, 150, 48;

I 211/177 [57] ABSTRACT A stand or rack constructed with supporting legs [561 Raterences Cited which are removably attached tothe sides of the stand UNITED STATES PATENTS and, when detached, are conveniently and compactly stored between the two side members. 1,365,873 1/1921 Waderlow ..248/165 2,602,008 7/1952 Hasselbring ..248/ 165 8 Claims, 5 Drawing Figures PATENTED 2 I973 3,708,143

INVENTOR Fl g. 5 HOWARD 0. .SCHLETZ BY JWMMW ATTO EYS COLLAPSIBLE SELF-STORING STAND BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION This invention is particularly useful where it is desired to temporarily set up a stand or rack and then conveniently dismantle it and store .it in a compact fashion. An example of this is for use at horse shows. It is desirable to have a stand which can hold a saddle during intervals when the horse is not on display and yet can be conveniently dismantled and made compact when not being used so that it can be stored away in a I small space because space is ordinarily at a premium when transporting horses to and from shows.

SUMMARY Two parallel rigid side members are held on opposite ends of at least one cross member and removable supporting leg members are mounted on the underside of the side members. The side members contain inward facing recesses. When the leg members are removed, they are stored compactly and conveniently by inserting their ends into the recesses. One of the side mem-' bers contains a slot communicating with its recess through which one end of the leg members can be slipped into the recess.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a front view of an embodiment of the invention showing the stand completely assembled;

FIG. 2 is a side view of the embodiment shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a top view;

FIG. 4 is a partial section view showing the inner face of one of the side members; and

FIG. 5 shows a dismantled stand with the legs stored between the side members.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT Stand has a pair of parallel facing side members 11 and 12 which are held apart by tubular cross members 13. Although two cross members are shown, any number of cross members can be used depending on the degree of support needed for the use of the stand.

.Extending downward from the underside of'the side members 11 and 12 are four supporting tubular leg members 15. All of the members are made out of some rigid, durable, preferably lightweight material which is relatively easy to machine. An example is aluminum. Preferably, the side members 11 and 12 are permanently attached to the ends of the cross members 13 but they can be removably but firmly secured, if desired. For the purposes of this invention, the side members are considered to always be attached to the cross member. The leg members 15 are threaded into or otherwise frictionally engaged with the bottom of the side members 11 and 12 The leg members should be heldin place and should be strong enough to support whatever is carried by the stand when it is assembled. Yet the legs should be fairly easy to detach in order to conveniently dissassemble and store away the stand.

Referring now in particular to FIG. 4, each of the side members 11 and 12 contains a recess 16 formed on the inside or innerfacing wall. The size, shape or form 17 which communicates with its recess 16 through which an end of the leg member passes when it is inserted into the recess. After -a leg is removed from the side member, one end is inserted into the recess 16 in the side member, 11 or 12, which does not contain the notch 17 and the other end is then inserted into the I recess 16 of the other side member by slipping it through the slot 17. It then rests between the two side members with the ends located within the respective recesses 16. FIG. 5 shows all four leg members 15 stored in this fashion. It can be observed that the dismantled stand then is quite compact and can be easily stored away in a convenient fashion in a small area or it can be conveniently hung on a wall or the like.

In the embodiment illustrated, it can be observed that there must be a relationship between the length of the leg members 15 and the distance between the side members 11 and 12 so that the leg members can be accommodated and that their ends will fit into the recesses and be kept in place. However, it is contemplated that the cross members 13 can be constructed so that they can be extended or shortened, if desired, for

example by making each from a pair of telescoping tubular members. In this manner then, the stand when assembled,-could be wider or narrower than its height. The legs could be either shorter or longer than the cross members but for storage the side members can be brought closer together or spread further apart to accommodate the legs. Correspondingly, it is also contemplated that the leg members can be constructed in similar fashion, so they can be extended or shortened as desired. Their lengths then can be adjusted after they are removed from the side members so that they can be inserted in the space between the side members and kept in place.

I claim:

1. A device of the nature described, comprising, in

combination:

a. a pair of spaced-apart side members;

b. an elongated cross member connected between said side members for holding said side members in theirspaced-apart relationship;

0. a plurality of elongated leg members removably attached to said side members for supporting said side members in an elevated position;

. each of said side members having a recess formed on its inner face for receiving an end of a leg member if detached from the side member; and

e. one of said side members having a slot through its underside communicating with said recess to permit passage of an end of the leg members into the recess in the side member.

2. The invention as set forth in claim 1 wherein said cross member and said side members constitute a plat 5. The invention as set forth in claim 4 further including another elongated cross member between said side members, said cross members running parallel to each other.

6. The invention as set forth in claim 1 wherein the recess in each side member for receiving an end ofa leg member does not extend through the side member.

7. The invention as set forth in claim 8 wherein the relationship of the length of the leg members, the distance between the side members and the depth of the recesses is such that when the ends of the leg members are located in the recesses the leg members are retained between the side members.

8. A collapsible, self-storing stand, comprising, in combination:

a. a pair of spaced-apart parallel side members, each having an imperforate outer face and a recess in its inner face;

b. a cross member connected between the inner faces of said side members for holding apart said side members at a fixed distance; and

. a plurality of equal length leg members removably attached to said side members for supporting said side members;

. one of said side members having a slot in its inner 

1. A device of the nature described, comprising, in combination: a. a pair of spaced-apart side members; b. an elongated cross member connected between said side members for holding said side members in their spaced-apart relationship; c. a plurality of elongated leg members removably attached to said side members for supporting said side members in an elevated position; d. each of said side members having a recess formed on its inner face for receiving an end of a leg member if detached from the side member; and e. one of said side members having a slot through its underside communicating with said recess to permit passage of an end of the leg members into the recess in the side member.
 2. The invention as set forth in claim 1 wherein said cross member and said side members constitute a platform adapted to support articles.
 3. The invention as set forth in claim 2 wherein said platform is elevated a substantial distance above the ground when the leg members are attached to the side members.
 4. The invention as set forth in claim 1 wherein said side members are rigid and are substantially parallel to one another.
 5. The invention as set forth in claim 4 further including another elongated cross member between said side members, said cross members running parallel to each other.
 6. The invention as set forth in claim 1 wherein the recess in each side member for receiving an end of a leg member does not extend through the side member.
 7. The invention as set forth in claim 8 wherein the relationship of the length of the leg members, the distance between the side members and the depth of the recesses is such that when the ends of the leg members are located in the recesses the leg members are retained between the side members.
 8. A collapsible, self-storing stand, comprising, in combination: a. a pair of spaced-apart parallel side members, each having an imperforate outer face and a recess in its inner face; b. a cross member connected between the inner faces of said side members for holding apart said side members at a fixed distance; and c. a plurality of equal length leg members removably attached to said side members for supporting said side members; d. one of said side members having a slot in its inner face communicating with its recess, the arrangement being such that when the leg members are detached from saId side members they are stored and retained between the side members by inserting the ends of the leg members in the recesses in the respective side members. 